Relatively Civilian
by Wingwyrm
Summary: Sakura's plan to get into the academy with Sasuke and Naruto is pretty simple: Impress a ninja family with her brilliance. Good thing she knows how to get Ino to be her friend. Gen, time travel, Team Tensai 'Verse
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** Sakura

**Rating: **T

**Summary: **Sakura's got a plan and it's going to be so much easier to implement then the one the boy's are doing.

**Warnings:** None

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does.

**Author Note:** So I had a thought. And it was a good thought. And it reminded me that some people wanted to read about Sakura's time in the past before she got on Team Tensai, so I figured that there was no harm in writing it out. I don't know how long this is going to be, but I do know it won't be any shorter than five chapters :)

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The very first thing that Sakura does when she wakes up in the past is get out of bed, creep down the hall, and crawl into her parent's bed. Her mother cuddles her close and rolls over so that she's in between her parent's bodies and Sakura has only one thought: this is the happiest she's been in over eight years.

The second time Sakura wakes up in the past, she's being spritzed in the face with her mother's ironing water bottle, the gentle mist settling on her face while her father laughs at her indignant shriek.

"Daddy!" She's not angry with him, she could never be angry with him, but she can't help but glower at herself when he leaves the room to have his morning shower. Her mother has already left the room and is most likely downstairs getting breakfast ready, so she doesn't see Sakura glaring at her clenched fists.

Sakura is awful glad her parents aren't ninja because her father would have noticed her halted attack at being woken up so suddenly.

She had been ready to put her hand through her father's throat. She'd been ready to kill him. She thanks all the gods she's ever heard of that she has good enough control over herself that she had been able to stop before moving more than an inch with aggressive intent.

She lolls around on the bed, waiting for her father to get done in the shower and when he comes out dressed for work and smelling like aftershave she feels a wave of nostalgia and lets him pick her up and carry her to the kitchen on his hip.

Her mother ruffles her short, bright pink hair and they eat, her parents talking about what they have planned for the day.

She has her own plans. And they involve Ino.

Her father leaves first, as he starts work at the mechanic's shop earlier than her mother at the library. Takumi kisses Shiori chastely on the lips and then kisses Sakura gently on the forehead. Shiori and Sakura wave goodbye to him and then Shiori tells Sakura to go upstairs and get ready to go to the baby-sitter's.

Sakura knows that she has to convince Akino, the brunette, sixteen year old civilian who watches her for her parents, to take her to the park where the ninja families take their children. Or, at least, the park that the Yamanaka's go to: Maple Park.

As she goes through her drawers she's mildly horrified at all the pretty, brilliant dresses she has. There isn't a single piece of clothing that doesn't scream 'civilian' and she feels strange as she pulls a soft yellow sundress on and toes on a pair of pink sandals that match her hair.

Even at the age of five she was coordinating her clothing. She is an original genius after all.

Akino takes her hand and Sakura prattles on about the higher end math that she's been doing in the study books that her mother sometimes brings home for her and the older girl just shakes her head and asks her to maybe not talk so much because she's making the teenager feel a little 'slow'.

"Akino?" Sakura smiles, "I'll be really quiet and I won't make fun of your homework mistakes out loud if you take me to a different park than usual." It's a bribe, Sakura knows, but it's one that's effective because Akino has an ego and hates to be shown up.

The teenager sighs and finally nods, "Fine, which park do you want to go to?"

"Maple Park," Sakura grins and Akino packs her bookwork into her shoulder-bag and they set off for Maple Park.

Sakura is a little put out that Akino has to pick her up half way there because she's so tired. She'll have to work on getting physically stronger as soon as possible. She crows loudly in Akino's ear when she sees the sign for Maple Park and laughs and blushes when Akino practically drops her in surprise of her enthusiastic reaction.

Akino's shout to be careful when she runs off towards the cluster of blond children near the picnic tables and is mostly ignored with only a wave to indicate that she'd heard the teen's yell.

She lets herself trip as soon as she's within reaching distance of Ino.

"Hey!" Five year old Ino is prissy, but Sakura is used to that because Ino never really emotionally matured, not even after half the Rookie Nine had died.

"Sorry," Sakura looks up with a tremble in her lower lip and then looks down to her dress, focusing on the dirt that has smeared across the hem. "Oh!" She gasps in fake concern, "Mama's gonna be so mad!"

Her hands brush at the dirt and she lets a tear or two fall so that she seems vulnerable. She has to seem shy so that no one will really question her sudden advanced chakra skills. A shy five year old would hide anything that made her different from her parents.

"Hey, hey," Ino kneels next to her and stills her hands, "It's okay, it's just dirt." Ino had a hidden kind side to her and Sakura is taking painful advantage of that, but since they'd become friends the first time around because of Ino's kindness, Sakura doesn't feel too bad about doing it on purpose this time.

"Th-thank you," Sakura sniffs and lets one of Ino's older cousin's, Inohiko, help her to her feet. Inohiko smiles down at her and goes back to his age mates. To make her feel better, Ino compliments her on her fashion coordinated shoes and how pretty her dress is.

Now that she's made tentative friends with Ino, it's easy for her to integrate herself with Ino's family and by the time lunch comes around, Ino is dragging her towards the Yamanaka picnic table and Romi, one of the rare civilian Yamanaka girls around Akino's age, asks Sakura's babysitter to sit with them too.

When Akino tells Sakura that they have to leave at four o'clock, Ino holds onto Sakura like a limpet and cries that she doesn't want her new friend to leave. Inoue, her closest cousin in age, joins her and finally Akino gives in, "Okay, okay, Romi-chan. Stop looking at me like that, I'll bring her back tomorrow to play." Romi lets her own pleading look go and smiles at them.

Sakura waves goodbye to Ino and Inoue and the rest of the blond clan and she falls asleep in Akino's arms on the way home.

She wakes up in her father's arms when she feels him stroke her hair.

"Sakura-chan?" He whispers and she snuggles into his body heat. She's missed her parents so much. It's been over five years since she's last seen them.

"Daddy," she murmurs into his shoulder and he chuckles deeply. He smells like oil and gas and metal, but it's different from the oil and gas and metal that ninja smell like. Takumi smells like honest labor and machines. Ninja smell like death and blood.

Sakura prefers her father's smell to any ninja she's ever met.

Her mother takes her from Takumi, carefully changes her clothes to her pajamas and tucks her into bed. Shiori sits on the edge of the bed and smiles, "Did you have fun today, Sakura-chan?"

"Yes, Mama," Sakura smiles back tiredly. She thinks that she _really_ needs to work on her stamina because she shouldn't be this tired after only a day of just playing. Hell, she didn't even do anything strenuous. "I made a friend."

"Really?" Shiori pets Sakura's hair and hums under her breath, "And what's your new friend's name?"

"Ino Yamanaka," Sakura says, fighting to keep awake long enough to tell her mother what she did during her day, "And Inoue. They like me."

"That's wonderful, Darling," Shiori says quietly.

"Ino-chan's gonna be a ninja," Sakura pronounces, giving her mother a hint. Sakura gets her intelligence from her parents, so she knows that it won't take much for her mother to understand her intentions. Hopefully Shiori will have, if not made peace, then reconciled that her daughter is going to be kunoichi by the time Inoichi and Shikaku approach the Harunos' about having Sakura join the academy in the fall.

Sakura knows that as soon as Inoichi sees her doing something fantastic with her chakra that he's going to talk to Shikaku and they'll both see her as an asset to Konoha that will need to be trained. She's more than willing to be 'drafted' as an early ninja genius this time instead of having to wait and then volunteering. She's volunteered once already, she doesn't need to again.

"A ninja, eh?" Shiori blinks and then her eyes go wide, "Yamanaka, you said?" She questions Ino's last name and Sakura smiles, knowing that even civilians know about the Yamanaka's given that they're one of the two prominent clans without pupils. If a civilian sees a brunet with no pupil, they know it's a Hyuga; if they see a blond, they know it's a Yamanaka.

The Yamanaka are also well known for their mind techniques. Sakura knows that some civilians tell their children to behave or a Yamanaka will go into their mind and make them forget everything, including their own name.

Sakura doesn't like those civilians.

"Yeah," Sakura is drifting off and can't seem to stay awake too much longer. She's had a very busy day for her tiny body and she's already started making headway into her plan. She's probably made more headway into her plan than either of the boys have made in one day.

Shiori pets her hair some more and starts singing quietly and Sakura can't stay awake anymore. Her eyes close and she falls unconscious to the sound of her mother's voice, who's been dead for seven years.

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	2. Chapter 2

**Title:** Inoichi

**Rating: **T

**Summary: **A civilian with amazing chakra control and the surprising ability to hide herself from him. Inoichi is intrigued.

**Warnings:** None

**Author Note:** Long time no see! But, hopefully I'm back and it won't take long before something else is updated.

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Inoichi Yamanaka is just happy that Ino's found a relatively normal friend. At least, that's what he thinks when he meets Sakura the first time. And then he looks closer at Sakura Haruno when his daughter and his cousin's daughter, Inoue, are playing in the back yard.

Sakura's chakra signature - the one that children under the age of seven rarely have - is muted.

Purposefully.

Which means that Sakura is suppressing her chakra.

It sort of makes sense when he thinks about it. Civilian children usually unconsciously suppress their chakra because unsuppressed chakra makes them so much different from their parents.

Romanaki comes up behind him and rests her hands on his shoulders, "Inoichi?"

"What does Sakura's chakra feel like?" He asks her and she raises an eyebrow but reaches out with her own chakra. Sakura looks up for a moment before shaking her head and going back to hopscotch with the girls.

"It's suppressed," she frowns, "And it's very potent for a girl her age."

"I thought so," Inoichi murmurs. He resolves to watch Sakura more closely when she's visiting.

It takes two more days of him watching her before he sees something that almost floors him.

Sakura is in the back yard again and while Ino has come inside the house to get water for them both Sakura looks up the wall of the house. Inoichi watches with widening eyes and blatant disbelief as she looks around for anyone who could be watching her before going to the wall and with _practiced ease_, walks up the side to pick a withering flower from the vine so that a new one can grow in its place.

Inoichi is still shocked when she walks calmly back down the wall and waits in the garden for Ino to come outside with the water.

What he's just seen is a shock that he can't quite believe.

A _five_ year old _walking _up a wall. With chakra.

"Inoichi, what's wrong?" Romanaki touches his arm and he turns to her.

"What would you say if I told you I saw a civilian child with genin level chakra control?"

Romanaki raises an eyebrow then looks out the window Inoichi is standing in front of. "Sakura-chan?" she asks with faint disbelief tainting her voice. Inoichi nods and she takes and deep breath and stops to think before saying anything else.

Inoichi likes that about his wife, the way that she'll take time to think about what she's going to say before she actually comes out and says it.

"We'd have to find out how she learned it," she muses out loud, "Before we could classify her as a genius. Some of the Hyuga children learn chakra control in their earlier years."

"Darling, she's a civilian." He reminds her and she nods, agreeing but not withdrawing her suggestion.

It takes Inoichi several days to pull Sakura to the side to talk to her. He can tell that she doesn't want to be different, that she wants to fit in and that she thinks that fitting in means that she can't use her chakra so he has to approach her when she doesn't have someone to act in front of; someone like Ino.

Not that Ino would mind if she found out that her new friend could already use chakra. She'd be a little jealous, obviously, but she wouldn't be cruel about it or look down on Sakura for her chakra.

It's not easy for civilians to become ninja because of the prejudice that surrounds them. The majority of civilians see ninja as morally corrupt people with only half a soul left and they condemn civilian born ninja for selling their soul to use 'magic' and wanting to kill. They do this even though they buy the services of ninja. It's hypocritical and Inoichi doesn't want to hurt Sakura by making her face her fears in front of what seems to be her first friend.

She looks nervous, but not worrisomely so.

"Sakura-chan," He sits on the ground and crosses his legs, making himself as short as her. Well, almost as short as her. "May I ask you a few questions?"

"Uhh," She hesitates but nods shyly, "Yes, Sir."

"Oh, I'm not a sir. Please call me Inoichi."

She blushes as pink as her hair, "Inoichi-san."

Inoichi smiles, "Sakura-chan, a few days ago, I saw something pretty amazing. Do you know what I saw?"

Her eyes widen and she licks her lips before trying to pretend that she isn't shaking, "No, Sir."

He tries to exude calmness and enforces his chakra with a feeling of safety and security and brushes up against her chakra with it. It seems to calm her a little. "I saw a very young girl walk up the side of my house," he tells her gently, "And I was wondering where that very smart little girl learned to do that."

"I- ah, Sir, I was just- Please don't tell my Mama!" She squeaks out and he touches her shoulder softly, hoping that physical contact will help the mingling of their chakra as he tries to keep her calm.

When he looks into her eyes, his chakra touching hers, something happens that he'd never thought possible.

He can't read her mind, not even a flutter of her surface thoughts.

When his chakra is in contact with someone else's and he's touching them, looking them in the eye, he is always able to read their mind; at the very least their surface thoughts. He'd planned on just skimming Sakura's mind to help anticipate her fears and lay them to rest before she panicked.

But he can't read her at all. There was something stopping him and he doesn't know what it is, but - to his building shock - it feels like _chakra_ was blocking his technique.

"I won't tell your mother now, Sakura-chan," Inoichi smiled at her and let her shoulder go, standing up. He was surprised to feel her lean against him.

"Thank you, Inoichi-san," she whispered and then ran off as quick as she could. Inoichi watched her go and shook his head.

That is the most confusing conversation he's ever had; usually the people he talk to don't have closed minds like hers is, so he's able to see layers and layers of what someone means when they speak. With Sakura he can only read her body language, which is under-developed because she is a child, and her words, which are surprisingly over-developed. He has learned quickly that Sakura is very bright, verging on genius. He hasn't been around her long enough to see if she satisfies the requirements of 'genius' though.

He'll have to talk to Shikaku sooner rather than later as well. It's a good thing that he has plans to go over and see his friend later in the day. He doesn't want his encounter with Sakura to have dimmed in his mind with the passing of time. With the information new and vivid in his mind's eye he'll be able to accurately recall the small details, like the fact that Sakura _hadn't_ used the ram seal, which most beginners use to help concentrate their chakra; nor had she hesitated whilst she'd defied gravity. It is the little things that really matter, because those details tell him a wealth of information and will tell Shikaku even more.

And eventually, he knows that he will have to tell her parents whether she wants him to or not.

He isn't about to let go of an asset like her.

"Daddy?" Ino tugs on his sleeve and he looks down with kind eyes, "What did you say to Sakura-chan? She was really nervous when she left with Shiori-san."

"Ino-chan," Inoichi crouches down and smiles, "Your friend is very smart."

Ino tskes and rolls her eyes, "I know _that_." She huffs again, "Whatever it was that you said to her, she kept looking at her mom-" Ino frowns deeper, "-and she felt scared."

The older blond doesn't let his surprise show. The fact that his daughter felt emotions from Sakura when he couldn't is strange. Maybe it is that they are both female. Maybe it is because they are the same age.

Maybe it is because Sakura doesn't think she had to hide from Ino.

Maybe it is all of them, or none of them.

"It's okay, Ino-chan," he soothes her. He smiles and reaches out, tucking a lock of white-blonde hair behind her ear. Ino smiles back. "I saw something that I wanted to talk to her about, that's all."

"Okay," Ino sighs and bites her lip. She straightens her spine, takes a step away and sets her hands on her hips, looking as stern as possible, "But I gotta let you know that if you hurt Sakura-chan, I'm'a tell Mom. And then Mom'll kick you in the shin."

Her eyes are hard and Inoichi has to restrain himself from cooing at her. His precious little daughter is so cute when she's trying to be intimidating. He isn't sure if he should hope that she'll get less adorable as she grows up or not. On one hand: adorable. On the other? Teenage boys.

"I promise that I won't hurt Sakura-chan," Inoichi smiles again and lets her feel his sincerity. He doesn't want to hurt Sakura and he doesn't have any plans on it. There might be some emotional upheaval when he finally speaks to her parents, but if he takes it slow with the Haruno's then there shouldn't be any problems.

"Okay," Ino lights up and bounces forward, hugging him tight around the neck before escaping his arms and running back to the house.

"Inoichi?" Romanaki appears at his elbow and Inoichi licks his lips, clearing his throat.

"I'm going to visit Shikaku this afternoon," He tells her conversationally, "-and Chouza. Did you want to come? We could take Ino and the kids could play together."

"Nah," Romanaki shrugs her shoulders, "I'm going to spend the rest of the day resting. For five year olds, Ino and Sakura are surprising active." Her laugh is low and strokes a furnace in his lower belly. She pats his shoulder, "You go have fun with your friends, Inoichi. Say 'hi' to the girls for me."

She turns and goes back inside the house. Inoichi sighs again and looks towards the civilian living areas. He is curious about Sakura and he's never been able to set aside his curiosity.

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	3. Chapter 3

**Title:** Early Enrollment

**Rating: **T

**Summary:** Drafting isn't a process in use anymore. At least, it's not _called_ that anymore.

**Warnings:** None

**Author Note:** Long time no see! Again :( Sorry. No excuses. Well. Maybe one. I finished my Naruto BigBang! :) Some forty thousand words! (I may or may not have a sequel already started...) (also, I am not dead and neither are these stories!)

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When Shikaku knocks on the Haruno door, Sakura is the one to open it. He's met her before, when Ino came over to play with Shikamaru, and Shikaku had seen something rather extraordinary in the little girl. He watches Sakura curtsy and her face light up.

"Shikaku-san!" She turns and starts pushing at her father's knees to let him in, "Come in!"

Shikaku looks to her father for permission to enter the house as he thanks Sakura for inviting him in. He's here to draft the man's daughter and Haruno-san understands that. Although it's not called 'drafting' unless it's during wartime, there really isn't another word for what he's doing. He'd like to call it early enrolment, but being a ninja isn't like going to college. It's a bloody career in a shadow military and he's here to tell Haruno-san that his daughter will be a very good killer.

He steps into the house when Haruno nods to him and easily slips his sandals off, following Sakura into the kitchen when she gestures for him and her father to follow her.

Sakura hauls out a stool from the island and drags it across the floor to the cabinets. She climbs up it and grabs the plate of cookies sitting there. They're peanut butter flavoured and Shikaku's always liked peanut butter.

"Would you like a cookie, Shikaku-san?" She smiles up at him shyly, balancing the plate carefully on her hands as she holds it up to him. "I helped Mama make them," She tells him with a bright, accomplished gaze.

"That would be lovely, thank you, Sakura-chan," Shikaku takes one of the cookies from the plate and Sakura blushes when he ruffles her short pink hair

Haruno pulls a chair out for Shikaku and after the Nara takes his seat, sits across the table from him, "So, Sakura-chan, introduce me to your friend." He tells his daughter and Shikaku can hear suspicion in his voice. Shikaku is pretty sure that the reason Haruno is suspicious is because Shikaku is a well known ninja and the Harunos are a rather plain civilian family. He doesn't sound like he's going to object too strenuously to Shikaku's proposal though.

"Daddy, this is Shikaku Nara. He's Ino-chan's Dad's best friend. Shikaku-san, this is my Daddy, Takumi Haruno."

Shikaku nods to Takumi and Takumi nods back.

They both know exactly who the other man is and Shikaku is playing along with Takumi for Sakura's sake.

"Sakura-chan, why don't you go and finish up your homework?" Takumi takes Sakura's hand and pulls the little girl to him. She hugs him tight, kisses his cheek and bounces away, happily humming. Shikaku isn't the only one that notices that she stops at the top of the stairs and then crouches down to eavesdrop on their conversation.

She's good, but she's still only a child yet.

"Haruno-san, I'm here to ask you and your family something."

Takumi purses his lips and bows his head. "You want Sakura," He murmurs and then looks up at Shikaku. Shikaku can see the condemnation in his eyes and though he doesn't like it, he's used to it.

He knows it's not good that he's used to being looked at like a murderer and killer. He doesn't want that for anyone, but Konoha is his life and he has to protect it in every way he knows.

Which means that if he has to draft a little girl into a ninja career and turn her into a deadly killer, that's what he'll do.

"We do," Shikaku answers. "She's shown a remarkable brilliance for her age, as well as chakra control far surpassing any person currently in the academy. We think she could graduate in one year, if she puts her mind to it."

Takumi lays his hands flat on the table and Shikaku distracts himself by taking a small bite of the cookie. It's quite good.

"Who are 'we', Nara-sama?"

Shikaku licks a crumb from his lips and blinks slowly, "Intelligence." He doesn't have to answer Takumi's questions, but thinks it will be easier to get Takumi to agree to giving up his only child if he has more information. It's not classified anyway.

"Who reported Sakura-chan to Intelligence?" Takumi asks, not taking his hands off the table. Shikaku knows the man is angry and trying to control himself and he understands. Shikamaru is smart enough to go to the academy this early, but the boy is too lazy to do any of the work and would fail miserably on purpose. Sakura is driven in a way that he hasn't seen in a while.

"Inoichi Yamanaka."

Takumi takes a deep breath and then lets it out slowly. "Sakura's new friend, Ino-chan. She is Yamanaka-sama's daughter?"

"Yes," Shikaku has to answer these questions before he can get his own answer from the Haruno. Everything is give and take and he has to give Takumi his answers before he can take Takumi's daughter.

The man leans back in his chair, studying his hands and Shikaku can hear Sakura shift at the top of the stairs. "Ino-chan will be a ninja, won't she?" Takumi's question isn't so much an actual question as it is a rhetorical. Takumi already knows that Ino will be kunoichi, just as he knows that Konoha will only wait so long before enticing his daughter into joining the academy with or without his permission.

"How long do I have?" Takumi asked softly. At least Shikaku won't have to explain what was going on, since the man already knows. All three of the Haruno's are exceptionally smart so it's not surprising that Takumi doesn't need more information.

"Less than a month," Shikaku murmured back. They need to know if she will be joining the academy this year or next year. If Takumi and Shiori let her join this year, Sakura would be in class with Sasuke and Naruto, two other early admittance, and they will be able to bond since they are all about the same age. If Sakura isn't allowed to join this year, Shikaku and Inoichi will use the year to dredge up some obscure law about knowing ninja techniques and force the little girl to go to the academy next year. While it won't be nice for all parties involved, it won't be that hard to actually get done.

"I'd like to talk it over with my wife," Takumi swallows harshly and breathes in a very controlled manner. He obviously doesn't want his daughter to become a killer, never mind so young, but Shikaku has a job to do and this is part of it.

There is only one way to bypass Sakura's enrolment into the academy and that would be to go to the Hokage himself and convince the man that Sakura doesn't want to be kunoichi.

Takumi obviously knows that would be a pointless exercise though because even Shikaku has heard Sakura profess to wanting to be ninja.

"Take whatever time you need, Haruno-san," Shikaku doesn't want to intrude on this family more than he already has, so he stands - leaving most of his cookie on the table - and gives Takumi a short bow. "Please remember that we will teach her how to defend herself." Takumi resists a scowl at him and Shikaku nods, "We don't want Sakura as 'cannon fodder', Takumi-san. We want her as one of our premiere kunoichi. We want Sakura to show off our strength and abilities. We wouldn't be able to do that unless she was the best and we wouldn't be steamrolling you and your family unless we thought that _she_ was the best."

"Thank you for coming and talking to me directly, Nara-sama," Takumi stands as well and starts towards the door, expecting Shikaku to follow him, which the Nara does. He doesn't want to offend Takumi anymore than he already has and he doesn't want the Haruno family to hold a grudge against the Naras.

Shikaku slips his sandals back on and let's himself be hurried out the door. He isn't insulted with the speed Takumi uses, understanding the man's feelings about him.

Inoichi meets him several blocks away with a curious cat-like look on his face. Shikaku sighs and shakes his head. "It's not going to be easy to get them to agree."

Inoichi smirks, "I think your underestimating Sakura-chan. She really wants to be a ninja and I sensed her at the top of the stairs overhearing your conversation with her father. She'll convince him."

"I don't have your faith in her commitment to ninja-hood, but I'm not the father of her best friend, am I?" Shikaku runs a hand over his hair and rolls his head to the side, cracking his neck. "Did you sense her naturally using chakra to enhance her hearing?" He asks and Inoichi nods with a wide grin.

"She's going to be simply amazing when she's had some proper instruction," Inoichi mused, a pleased look on his face. "It helps that because she's so good, Ino-chan has started to work harder on her own to get ready for the academy. If Sakura helps Ino out, Ino might be ready to join the academy a year or even two early."

Shikaku stroked a hand over his hair and cracked his neck, stretching out. "Do you think that would work with Shikamaru? I tried the competitive thing with him against other boys, but he didn't seem to care. You think he might take the challenge of a girl knowing just as much if not more than him?"

"I think that you should half-gloat about her accomplishments and watch to see if Shikamaru takes it as a challenge. As lazy as the boy is, he doesn't like to lose." Inoichi smirks and cracks his knuckles, "I imagine that if you were to set up of competition when both of them were there, it could be fun to see Shikamaru actively involved."

"So," Shikaku cocks his head to the side and gives Inoichi an assessing look, "-when is Sakura next visiting your house?"

Inoichi glances out at him from the corner of his eye as they jump to the roof tops to speed their way back to Shikaku's office, "Next Friday. Ino-chan invited Sakura-chan for a sleepover."

Shikaku snorts, "Is it nice to have a daughter?" He mutters rhetorically, "You get to deal with ribbons and dresses and children playing house. Poor Chou has to deal with mud and blood and fisticuffs over frogs." Inoichi clears his throat and Shikaku looks at him then realizes what he insinuated by leaving his son out of it. "But Shikamaru is too lazy for either. I have to check the boy every so often to see if he's still breathing."

Laughing at his long time friend, Inoichi leads the way through the Intelligence building, his broad shoulders and recognizable face clearing a path quickly, "I'm going to leave out some textbooks from the academy, pretend that I'm looking through the curriculum and see if Sakura picks anything up."

Shikaku enters his office behind his friend and hangs his coat on the hook, "Good plan. I think you should grab the higher level texts to make her have to work at it. And maybe get a little curious."

Inoichi hums, "Yeah, I can do that."

"So," Shikaku sits behind his desk and Inoichi sits across from him, "Anything else on the agenda today?"

They spend the rest of their day going over reports from Ibiki. Neither of them are as interested in the reports as they are in the little girl with so much potential.

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End file.
